Gotta catch them all…. Stamps, that is, and it’s not catch as much as “stamp”

My hotel informed me that I could come down for a free breakfast. It was a toast buffet, with all the bread individual wrapped and the most fluffy soft toast slices ever.

This is my hotel room as well.

I arrived at Ohori Park/ Maizuru Park at 8:00am. These two green spaces are the grounds of Fukuoka castle. Fukuoka castle no longer stands as an intact castle, but its foundations are heritage listed, and they have filled the spaces with sports ovals and gardens.

The parks are filled with blossoms and have a flower schedule, so there are blossoms all year round. The plum blossoms have finished, and now cherry blossoms. So many cherry blossoms, majestic backdrops, scenic lakes and impressive stone walls. For conciseness, I’ll put the first lot in one big picture bunch.

I learnt much later that I did the castle ruins in the wrong direction. I started at the side gate and climbed to the base of the main tower.

The view from the top was grey but pretty, and it was the first time this trip I needed my jacket.

Ancient japanese castle makers obviously made their stairs with giants in mind because the steps are huge.

At this point, I was already going to have to double back to go to the Fukuoka ruins museum and info centre so I picked a path I thought would be quickest. As usually, when I take a shortcut it usually takes twice as long.

I like castles. They are pockets of nature and spaces of peace. At least they are when its not cherry blossoms season, and there isn’t a big viewing event about to happen later that day. I ran into the food stalls and tents around 11am on the lower levels of the park near the main entrance. I got lunch there much later, a beef skewer and some long potato.

I went into the ruins museum and found my second stamp (the first was in the side entrance I entered through).

This is when I realised it was actually a game. To find and collect all the stamps in the park.

So, of course, I had to get them all. I had three, when I found the info centre and I was going to get them all. It was then that I found the monkey. It was near the main gate and 1st stamp. As far as I could tell, it was called either sosuke or sasuke. I didn’t understand the japanese, but even I had a giggle on what I could grasp.

At this point, it was around 12, and people were slowly starting to dribble in, in larger numbers. I had lunch and went on my search for the remaining stamps. I took the correct route through the castle and double over my previous steps to get more stamps.

At this point, I reached 10,000 steps. But I still had 6 stamps left, and by jove, I was going to get them all. Even if I had no real clue where they were.

I stopped for drinks and finished my long (cold) potatos, then headed to the Fukuoka art museum and Ohori Japanese garden.

I went into the art museum looking for stamps and found a gift shop with things I wanted to buy. I didn’t actually go into the museum proper, art is not really my thing, but I got a stamp from the museum and the stamp from the game. Next door was the Japanese garden, and it’s stamp, but I also went in . Unsurprisingly, it was like all other japanese gardens the world over; ponds and fish, manicured lawns and trees.

I was now lost. I didn’t know where the next step was, and I hadn’t found the helpful map at this stage, so I did quite a bit aimless walking around the lake in Ohori Park. After I found the map, things went much faster. Took another short, long cut and found this cat. Chilling out of the drizzly rain that had been on and off since 1pm.

Got my last stamp right near where I started. It was another flower garden that blooms at another time of year. I also found more manhole covers.

I was done! All the stamps collected. My feet were aching, my heart filled. I was ready to retire for the night. Only problem, it was only 2.30pm. Still, I had something I had to do in Fukuoka. Try Hakata Ramen at Ichiran. So I went for early dinner.

I think I would have liked it more if I liked pork. Still very odd experiences sitting in a booth and seeing anyone’s face. Now, for the last photos of the post, just an assortment of things I found and photographed but bear no impact on the story.